Psych, services for jail 'urgent’

Press, 2 June 1986, Page 13

Psych, services for jail 'urgent’

PA Wellington Psychiatric services for prison inmates should be improved urgently, says the president of the Wellington prisoners’ aid group, Mr John Batten. “Improvement in availability of psychiatric services for all inmates and for introduction of strategic counselling for violent offenders while in prison is an urgent necessity,” he said in the latest newsletter of the Prisoners’ Aid and Rehabilitation Society of Wellington.

Services now available to inmates and to all offenders were poor. Professional psychiatric services tended only to be available to those inmates that show outwardly great emotional instability. “Indeed, for many inmates the atmosphere of a prison will often exacerbate emotional and psy-, chiatric problems,” hef said.

The National director of the Prisoners’ Aid and Rehabilitation Society, Mr Kevin Allen, agrees with Mr Batten. There was a need for. adequate psychiatric services in prisons, he said. Existing pyschiatric services were under pressure to provide that back-up. The problem could not be tackled if violent offenders were placed in penal institutions without psychiatric counselling, said Mr Allen.

The Justice Department reviewed its psychological services for prison inmates and its Probation Division as part of the Ministerial review, procedures taking place in Government departments, a" departmental spokesman said.

Recommendations would not be considered until a new director of psychological services was appointed.